


Lush Life

by niijsii



Category: King's Maker (Webcomic)
Genre: Alcohol, Bartender Wolfgang, Character Study, First Meetings, Jazz Club AU, Kinda, LMAO, Longing Stares, M/M, Modern AU, Patron Shin, Soohyuk is Big Sad, They're both lonely, but I really wanted to play w/ my favorite jazz standard, idk I tried my best, just read it maybe you'll get what I'm saying, lots of watching, this probably did NOT go the way I wanted it to, wolfgang pov
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-22
Updated: 2020-12-22
Packaged: 2021-03-11 00:22:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,025
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28246104
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/niijsii/pseuds/niijsii
Summary: Wolfgang works as a bartender at Bar Ulysses and had every intention to quit. That was, until a mysterious, solemn stranger by the name of Shin Soohyuk had taken a seat at the bar a few weeks back. While tending to his nightly routine of silence, shaking, and stirring, Wolfgang finds himself even more captivated by Soohyuk than usual.
Relationships: Wolfgang Goldenleonard & Shin Soohyuk, Wolfgang Goldenleonard/Shin Soohyuk
Comments: 8
Kudos: 14





	Lush Life

**Author's Note:**

> Strayhorn's "Lush Life" is one of my favorite standards— I've had renditions of it on repeat for a whole day while writing this. It may be a /little/ rough but I hope you enjoy anyway!
> 
> WolfShin Week 2020 entry for "Modern AU"
> 
> Checkout the hashtag #WolfShinWeek 2020 for more works!

_ He _ returned. Walked across the room as if his steps were piano notes themselves. Delicate but with an intense purpose. Not necessarily like he wanted the attention or the pull of eyes throughout the room, though. Nobody really noticed him like how Wolfgang noticed him.   
  
  
_ I used to visit all the very gay places… _ _  
_ _  
_ _  
_ It had only been two weeks since  _ he, _ Shin Soohyuk, first stepped foot into Bar Ulysses. Wolfgang had every reason to quit and move on from his miserable job as a bartender until the moment Soohyuk took a seat in the final barstool. Wolfgang had quickly taken note of the name on the card once he held onto it for a tab. A tab that never went past one drink.   
_  
_ Wolfgang wasn't sure what it was. The man ignored the music playing in the distance almost instinctively. Like he wanted to block out the sound from moving him. Like he feared something stirring him up inside. Or, at least, that's what Wolfgang gathered. From the way Soohyuk sat, perfectly poised with a finger on the lip of his glass. Whiskey. Neat. Barely taking a sip, sometimes leaving the glass completely untouched by then end of the night. His eyes absently fixated above the top shelf liquors that reflected the dim lights of the room.   
  
  
_ … From jazz and cocktails. _ _  
_ _  
_ _  
_ That was the condition the two were bound by, in Wolfgang’s eyes. They never spoke past a simple “good evening” and “the usual”, never had a full conversation. The reality was that the bar Wolfgang worked at not only  _ felt _ like limbo, it  _ was _ limbo. Purgatory. Lost, helpless souls circulated around each other in an endless, drunken dance. He was no exception. He was just as lost. Just as lonely. Watching people like a river.   
  
  
_ The girls I knew had sad and sullen gray faces… _ _  
_ _  
_ _  
_ There was always a question he wanted to ask Soohyuk. Why here? Why this destitute bar with broken spirits? Who broke his? But he could never pull up the courage. Wolfgang just wiped down the bar and switched out dirty glasses with clean ones. Kept himself busy in between glances.    
  
  
_ … With distingué traces…  _ _  
_ _  
_ _  
_ There was no exchanging of pleasantries there. Not with anyone. Nobody wanted to talk, they just wanted to listen. To drink. Though, it seemed like both him and Soohyuk always did everything in their power to ignore the music. The rattling of ice and the hum of the freezer when he opened it for more cubes accompanied whatever it was he was yearning for. The company of less depressing noise.   
  
  
_ … Then you came along…  _ _  
_ _  
_ _  
_ The voice of the woman singing shook both him and Soohyuk at the same time. The ringing on “then” reverberating off the glasses, resting into the “you”, and driving the phrase forward with insistent force.   
  
  
_ … that your poignant smile… _ _  
_ _  
_ _  
_ Wiping drinking glasses. Standing in silence. Everytime he glanced over at Soohyuk to witness his reaction to the song being sung, it was a surprise. Something so disturbingly intriguing it filled his head with more questions. Was this a man in love?   
  
  
_.... Was tinged with the sadness…  _ _  
_ _  
_ _  
_ Or was this a man in heartbreak?    
  
  
_ … Of a great love for me… _ _  
_ _  
_ _  
_ On the edge? At a breaking point?   
  
  
_ …. Ah, yes, I was wrong…  _ _  
_ _  
_ _  
_ Disturbed pause. A lilt of hope.   
  
  
_ Again. _ _  
_ _  
_ _  
_ The cold, reserved look in Soohyuk’s eyes shattered.  _  
_ _  
_ _  
_ _ I was wrong. _ _  
_ _  
_ _  
_ Then, Soohyuk did something truly surprising. He looked towards the stage. Moved his whole body and took his half filled glass with him to the full crescendo of the note. Brought whisky to lips and sipped with a languid expression. He was _ listening _ and Wolfgang couldn’t keep his eyes off of him.   
  
  
_ … I'll forget you I will…  _ _  
_ _  
_ _  
_ “Excuse me!” A voice called from the end of the bar. Pointed and shrill. “Can I please get a drink over here? Damn.”

Wolfgang responded to the call. Took a break from his distracted glances at Soohyuk to fulfill patron wishes. 

Martini. Stirred. A glass of Merlot. A desperate call for help.   
  
  
_ … I'll live a lush life…  _ _  
_ _  
_ _  
_ Maybe after this song, he can try and ask for a name. Formally introduce himself. Wolfgang’s head filled with that indiscernible expression from lines ago. Perhaps he could slip his phone number on a napkin the traditional way? He didn’t want— No, he  _ couldn’t _ let tonight be the night that Soohyuk slipped from underneath him.   
  
  
_ … In some small dive…  _ _  
_ _  
_ _  
_ Wiping back down to the end of the bar, he was met with the same face as before. A flinch. Wide, cobalt blue, eyes full of secrets and just as many truths. What did  _ he _ fear?  _ What do I fear? _ Wolfgang asked himself.

  
  


_ … Of those whose lives are lonely… _

  
  


Wolfgang’s attention was briefly taken away by the woman on stage. Her head voice vibrated on the interval jump and she looked to be at peace. Like something had reconciled within her. 

  
  


_ … Too. _

  
  


When Wolfgang turned back, Soohyuk’s face was completely frozen. He just stared at the woman with upturned brows, worried and pained. No applause. Nobody ever applauded there. 

What was going on in his head? Soohyuk’s crystal tears; glittered underneath the muted, tawny lighting. What struck a chord in this beautiful man who, before tonight, sat absent in that barstool. Who, before tonight, was now crying silently and alone, at a bar that only welcomed the most downtrodden souls.  _  
  
_

Wolfgang didn't even realize he was touching fingertips with Soohyuk until he moved his fingers forward to pick up his empty glass. Soohyuk whipped his head back to the bar, meeting eyes with Wolfgang— wet cheeks and all. Their fingers stayed touching for a moment until Soohyuk jerked his fingers back slightly. __  
  


"Would you like another drink?" Wolfgang asked. Staring so hard. So intently. Almost desperate for Soohyuk to say yes, just so he could look at him a few moments longer.

"Y-yes." Soohyuk replied. Quick and short. Not breaking the eye contact that held them together. "I would."

Wolfgang pulled the glass from the front of the bar. Not wavering in the slightest. He wanted to make it known that he was looking. Watching. Yearning. "Coming right up."

**Author's Note:**

> It's hard to listen to the song and read at the same time BUT this live performance from Gaga was the one playing in my head the whole time if you care to listen:
> 
> https://youtu.be/DNzhxmFXmFU
> 
> Thank you for reading ❤️


End file.
